Aircrafts may be fitted with (or may carry) various types of sensors for obtaining images, detecting chemicals, and the like. For example, sensing equipment can provide infrared and photographic images with geospatial, chemical, and radiological information. The sensing equipment can use multiple sensors. Example sensors include infrared line scanners, high speed infrared spectrometers, gamma-ray spectrometers, and digital aerial cameras, among others.
The information from the sensors can be used for a number of purposes, such as emergency response, security, environmental surveys, climate monitoring, etc. For instance, the information from the sensing equipment can assess the extent and severity of damage to critical infrastructure during emergencies.
In many cases, the sensors and other instruments are exposed on the bottom of the aircraft to enable the sensing to be directed toward the ground. It may even be necessary to have a window or opening formed in the bottom of the aircraft's fuselage so the sensing equipment can be housed inside the aircraft. Depending on the type of aircraft used, obstructions or interference by aspects of the aircraft can disrupt or alter the sensing capabilities of the sensing equipment. For example, many types of aircraft have exhaust from a front turboprop engine that is directed under the aircraft's fuselage. In these situations, the exhaust can interfere with the sensing capabilities. Other aircraft, such as a twin engine aircraft like an Aero Commander 680 FL/G Platform, may not suffer from these disadvantages.
The subject matter of the present disclosure is directed to overcoming, or at least reducing the effects of, one or more of the problems set forth above.